Installation¶

Requirements¶

MARPLE requires Python 3.10 or later. It has no mandatory external dependencies — NumPy is optional but recommended for performance on large arrays.

We recommend using uv for fast, reliable Python package management.

Install from PyPI¶

uv venv
source .venv/bin/activate      # on Windows: .venv\Scripts\activate
uv pip install marple-lang

Install from source¶

For the latest development version:

git clone https://github.com/romilly/marple.git
cd marple
uv venv
source .venv/bin/activate      # on Windows: .venv\Scripts\activate
uv pip install -e .

This installs MARPLE in development mode, so changes to the source take effect immediately.

Verify the installation¶

marple

You should see the MARPLE banner and a six-space prompt:

MARPLE v0.3.0 - Mini APL in Python
CLEAR WS

Type 1+1 and press Enter. You should see 2. Type )off to exit.

Optional: NumPy for performance¶

If NumPy is installed, MARPLE uses it automatically for element-wise operations on large arrays (roughly 73× faster than pure Python). Install it with:

uv pip install numpy

MARPLE detects NumPy at startup — no configuration needed. To force pure-Python mode (useful for testing or on platforms without NumPy):

MARPLE_BACKEND=none marple

For development¶

To install with test dependencies:

uv pip install -e ".[test]"
pytest           # run the test suite
pyright src/     # type checking (strict mode)